3 Ways to Go from Old Door to Gorgeous Décor

image: Gordon M. Robertson

Trusty doors. They keep out storms and intruders, indicate our comings and goings, separate rooms—and with a little do-it-yourself imagination, can be revamped into one-of-a-kind home décor.

If you don’t already own a retired door or two, then scour secondhand stores, antique malls and salvage yards for doors with character. The cheap wooden doors sold today just can’t compare to vintage versions made from solid oak, walnut and pine. Look for doors that feel heavier and more solid, and that feature interesting details like keyholes, carvings and all-around better craftsmanship. Even timeworn doors with peeling paint, scratches and nicks – if they have a solid frame – will ultimately look better than their inferior modern versions.

Open the door to some seriously cute home decorating with these three creative uses for old doors.

A Bed Frame that Wows

image: Barb McMahon

Reclaim an old door to serve as a stunning headboard, footboard or both for your bed. You can mount your door-turned-headboard or footboard to the wall, or attach it to your bed frame. Whether you choose to repaint the door in a dramatic color or leave it in its original grain, you’re guaranteed to have one distinctive structure for your bed.

Juxtapose your vintage headboard with a modern duvet or go the retro route with a handmade quilt.

One-of-a-kind Room Divider

Need to fill an awkward space? Maybe you want to quadrant off sections of your studio apartment? A few hinges and some screws and you can easily fasten together two or more salvaged doors to create a unique room divider or screen.

Old doors were often made-to-order (unlike the standard sizes today), so you may be able to find smaller or larger doors depending on the size of room divider that would best fit your space.

Work of Art

image: Comander Straker

A pair of matching doors repainted in the color of your choice would look particularly stunning mounted on a wall as a backdrop to a dining room table, especially if the pair boasted Old World intricate details like carvings or cutouts. Think two doors mounted vertically side-by-side as if they could open at any moment to reveal an unknown world behind them.

You could also mount a vintage door horizontally in any room of your home to fill an open wall space and to add a pop of visual interest. The door would serve as artwork, just like any picture or poster, only far more interesting.

Like these doors ideas? Imagine what you can do with windows or shutters. Check these out:

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